Luca Caputi
Canadian | birth_date = | birth_place = Toronto, ON, CAN | draft = 111th overall | draft_year = 2007 | draft_team = Pittsburgh Penguins | career_start = 2008 | nickname = }} Gianluca Caputi (born October 1, 1988) is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). Luca grew up in Maple, Ontario, a suburban community northwest of Toronto. Playing career Luca Caputi began his junior career with the Mississauga IceDogs of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in the 2004–05 season. He played for the same team for four seasons, even after the Mississauga IceDogs moved and became the Niagara IceDogs, until 2007–08. After his 2006–07 season, Caputi was drafted in the fourth round by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft as the 111th overall pick. While several scouts projected him as high as the 40th pick claiming that he was a great package of both size and skill possessing a long reach, he managed to drop into the 4th round. Teams passed on him due his inconsistent play of edge and skill with a lack of effective hitting. In the following and final season with the Niagara IceDogs, Caputi found his balance with 51 goals and 111 points in just 66 games, becoming an offensive juggernaut on the first line. His 111 points were fourth in league scoring and his 51 goals were third in the OHL while both his 51 goals and 111 points are the most in one season for the Mississauga and Niagara IceDogs organization. Caputi led the team into the playoffs where they defeated the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors 4-0 before losing to the Oshawa Generals 4 games to 2 in the conference semifinals. Following his breakout season, on April 23, 2008, Caputi signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He then helped the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League reach the Calder Cup Finals with 8 points in 19 games. After starting the 2008–09 season with Wilkes-Barre, Caputi made his NHL debut against the Montreal Canadiens on February 3, 2009, scoring his first NHL goal on his first shift after being on the ice for just 2:03 of ice time. On March 4, 2009, Caputi was assigned to the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL due to "a violation of team rules." In the 2009–10 season on January 5, 2010, Caputi was recalled back up from Wilkes-Barre due to the injured Chris Kunitz. He scored a goal and played on the Penguins' second line against the Atlanta Thrashers. On March 2, 2010, Caputi was traded along with defenceman Martin Skoula to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forward Alexei Ponikarovsky. On March 4, he played his first game for the Maple Leafs and recorded an assist against the Boston Bruins. He scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf against the Boston Bruins on March 9th with 40 seats reserved for family and friends in Toronto. On October 4, 2010, the Toronto Maple Leafs announced that Caputi was one of four players assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. On October 27, 2010 Caputi was called up by the Maple Leafs Career statistics References External links * * *TheAHL.com bio * Category:Born in 1988 Category:Canadian ice hockey players Category:Mississauga IceDogs alumni Category:Niagara IceDogs alumni Category:Pittsburgh Penguins draft picks Category:Pittsburgh Penguins players Category:Toronto Maple Leafs players Category:Toronto Marlies players Category:Wheeling Nailers players Category:Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins players